Stephen McDonald

Open Doors to Open Hearts (Acts 16:1-15)

We saw that conflict is a part of life in the church, we saw that last Sunday. And one reason why conflict arises is that we have expectations. We expect that the church will do this, or be like that. We have expectations of other Christians. We expect things of ourselves. What do we doContinue reading “Open Doors to Open Hearts (Acts 16:1-15)”

Christians in Conflict (Acts 15:36-41)

“In the summer of 1932, the [Monroe Baptist] church actually split into two rival factions as to who should be the pastor. One side was backing the Reverend W. W. Hill, an old-school preacher who had just been ousted; the other was supporting Professor Foster, a starched man with a standoffish wife and brilliant childrenContinue reading “Christians in Conflict (Acts 15:36-41)”

Controversy Settled? (Acts 15:22-35)

The big question in Acts 15 is ‘What do I have to do to be saved?’ If we insist on anything in addition to faith in Jesus for ourselves or anyone else to be accepted by God then we have fallen for the trap of legalism. When we last looked at this chapter one monthContinue reading “Controversy Settled? (Acts 15:22-35)”

Come to Me and I Will Give You Rest (Matthew 11:25-30)

Last week, in possibly a bored moment, I was looking at the ABC News website online. And I found this article. It is written by a young lady named Caroline Zielinski: About eight months ago, I did a very scary thing. I quit my job to search for meaning — and it dramatically improved myContinue reading “Come to Me and I Will Give You Rest (Matthew 11:25-30)”

The Most Important Truth (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)

What’s the difference between Christmas and Easter? Christmas is the start of the story, where God comes to mankind. Easter is the culmination of the story, where it is made possible for mankind to come to God. The early church didn’t mark Christmas, but from the earliest days, the death of Jesus has been notedContinue reading “The Most Important Truth (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)”